Our nutritionist covers – Vitamin E

Vitamin E

You might have heard of vitamin E and know that it is, among other vitamins, very important for overall health. But do you know what it is exactly and where it can be found? This blog post covers this topic so you can be sure you’re giving your body what it needs, especially during the challenging winter season.

During winter, our immune systems are constantly bombarded with changes in weather conditions, going from a warm, dry house to cold, damp outside air and back again, people sneezing and coughing on your way to work. Vitamin E is one of the less spoken of immunity boosters, and although you can get it from many different sources, picking foods that carry a lot of other benefits as well makes a lot of sense.

What is it then?

Well, first of all, it’s a fat-soluble vitamin. Which means that it dissolves in fat. It is also an important vitamin required for the proper functioning of many organs in the body. Vitamin E is also an antioxidant.

I’ll quickly tell you a little bit about the magic that is an antioxidant. An antioxidant is a substance that may prevent or delay some types of cell damage and protect your precious body from these harmful reactions.You can find the three main antioxidant vitamins in colourful fruits and vegetables, especially those with blue, purple, red, orange and yellow hues. These main dietary antioxidant vitamins are vitamin E, vitamin C and vitamin A.

So the best way to ensure your body’s antioxidant stores are topped up is to include plenty of berries, fruits and vegetables in your daily diet – choose different colours and enjoy as fresh as possible. By going for different colours of the rainbow, you are getting in a wider variety of vitamins and minerals and therefore providing your body with the best building blocks for optimal health. Opt for a minimum of 5 portions of fruits and vegetables a day to get enough of these important antioxidant vitamins, among others. A teaspoon of arctic blueberry powder is equivalent to a handful of wildly grown berries and conveniently count towards your daily vitamin intake.

Vitamin E is also sometimes used for improving physical endurance, to increase energy, to reduce muscle damage after exercise and to improve muscle strength. These benefits cannot be guaranteed but if you eat plenty of vitamin E rich foods, you are improving your body’s performance and recovery.

Stocking up

As vitamin E is fat soluble, when enjoying fruit and veg rich in vitamin E, consider consuming them with a source of good fats that will optimise the absorption of this important antioxidant vitamin. Did you know? The mighty vitamin C also improves the antioxidant properties of vitamin E in the body, along with other added benefits. So although you can easily get vitamin E from foods such as plant oils, nuts and berries you do get added benefits from also stocking up on fruits and vegetables rich in both of these vitamins, which again berries are great for.

Try this!

For breakfast or as a snack, you might enjoy a bowl of berry powder sprinkled on Greek yogurt, chia seeds and topped with a spoonful of pomegranate kernels and some cinnamon to sweeten the deal. There are many vitamin E- rich recipes on our website recipe section.